Preaching Punchlines: The Ten Commandments of Comedy

by Susan Sparks

"It should be obvious that the Rev. Susan Sparks has a great sense of humor when she is asking me, a Jew, to write a few words about her new book where she tries to teach preachers how to infuse their sermons with comedy. In lovely, sweet, and humorous lessons, she has done a wonderful job that is simple, direct, and to the point. She has given a road map to helping find one’s sense of humor and how to use it. From preachers to public speakers, it’s a book you’re going to want to read and refer to. With what I’ve learned, I just may show up preaching at a church near you." —Lewis Black, Comedian


"How many preachers ever think, "My congregation deserves joy”? But that’s the key question that Susan Sparks puts to us in this lively, practical, and searching book, which will make seasoned (i.e., jaded) preachers think again and look at what is demanded of them in what ought to be the joyful role of communicating the divine comedy of healing and transfiguration." —Rowan (not Atkinson, alas) Williams, Former Archbishop of Canterbury


"A preacher with a motorcycle, cowboy boots, a wicked sense of humor, and a heart that warms you like a huge Southern-style breakfast. That’s my pastor!" —Tamron Hall, Broadcast journalist and television host


Waiting in the wings is an untapped power that can transform the craft of preaching. It isn’t studied or taught because it has been mistaken as trivial or simply the means to get a laugh. What is this ignored superpower? The art of stand-up comedy. In Preaching Punchlines: The Ten Commandments of Comedy, Susan Sparks brings two decades of experience as a preacher and a professional stand-up to mine the strategies comedians have employed for years. Lessons include framing messages that people will listen to, remember, and share; finding your creative voice; building bridges and community; and bringing full authenticity in the pulpit. The art of stand-up comedy is not just about jokes; it’s about developing intimacy, honesty, and trust—three dynamics that must be present before any sermon is truly heard.

Genres: Humor

138 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 29, 2019

About the author

As a trial lawyer turned standup comedian and Baptist minister, Susan Sparks is America’s only female comedian with a pulpit. A North Carolina native, Susan received her B.A. at the University of North Carolina and a law degree from Wake Forest University.

After ten years as a lawyer moonlighting as a standup, she left her practice and spent two years on a solo trip around the world, including working with Mother Teresa’s mission in Calcutta, climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, and driving her Jeep Wrangler solo from NYC to Alaska. Upon returning home, she entered Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where she earned a Master of Divinity and wrote an honors thesis on humor and religion.

In May 2007 Susan was installed as the 15th Senior Minister of the historic Madison Avenue Baptist Church in New York City. She was the first woman pastor in its 170-year history and she remains there to this day. (Y'all come visit!)

A TEDx speaker, Susan's work with humor, healing, and spirituality has been featured in O (The Oprah) Magazine, the New York Times, and on such networks as ABC, CNN, CBS, and the History Channel.

A professional comedian, Susan tours nationally with a stand-up Rabbi and a Muslim comic in the Laugh in Peace Tour. In addition to her speaking and preaching, Susan writes an award-winning nationally syndicated column through GateHouse Media distributed to over 600 newspapers reaching over 21 million people in 36 states. She is the author of Laugh Your Way to Grace: Reclaiming the Spiritual Power of Humor and her newest book, Preaching Punchlines: The Ten Commandments of Comedy.

Susan is the 20th recipient of the John L. Haber Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Arts given by the University of North Carolina (and comedian/alum Lewis Black), as well as a recipient of the Intersections International Award for interfaith work to promote justice and reconciliation among diverse communities.

Most importantly, Susan and her husband Toby love to fly-fish, ride their Harleys, eat good BBQ, and root for North Carolina Basketball and the Green Bay Packers.

Reviews

[Jeff Garrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Last year, at a St. Andrews banquet, I was seated next to an attorney for Atlanta. Across from me was a Lutheran pastor. With two pastors at this table, the attorney began to tell me of a former attorney he’d hire right after her graduation from law school. He was sad when she left the South to work in New York, and amazed that she became a pastor and a stand-up comedian. Maybe he was hoping we’d tell some jokes, but instead, I asked, “Susan Sparks?” “Yes,” he said, “how did you know?” Five or so years ago, I’d read her book, Laugh Your Way to Grace. A year later, when in New York on a Sunday, I worshipped at Madison Avenue Baptist Church, where she serves as the pastor. Ever since, I have read her newsletters and homilies and enjoy her fresh approach to scripture and preaching. So when this book was published, I picked up a copy.

Predictably, the book consists of ten chapters, each with a commandment pertaining mostly to preaching, but also to comedy. Spark’s goal wasn’t to write a book on how to do stand-up comedy in the pulpit. But she does make the case that sermons should be joyful, after all we’re proclaiming the good news. She provides many tips from the stand-up comedy world which could benefit the preacher. Ideas such as quickly getting to the point, to preach with variation, to draw on the humor around us (and in the Biblical text), not to steal material from others, and Sunday morning as a party (and not an exhausting one) with plenty of laughter. This book is packed with great ideas, although her ninth commandment, “Thou Shalt Achieve World Peace through Humor,” fulfills one of the aspects of the law by showing us how we must depend on grace. But, as she says, even if we don’t achieve world peace, we could create a ripple that will help change people and eventually, with enough changes, can help make the world better.

This is a short book that I quickly read. I found myself wanting more, but then, I think that’s also a rule of comedy. You quit while people are still a bit hungry instead of waiting till they’re stuffed and tired of you. I recommend this book for preachers.